Gary's Past
by Spottedpool
Summary: No one thought they would even need to know about Gary's past, but he starts to fall ill, and the team is worried. Rosen thinks that figuring out who the mysterious girl who once saved him from a bully is. But will they like what they find?
1. Prolgue

**Editted! I spaced this chapter... **

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><p>She heard them before she saw them. She was walking down the hall, towards class, and heard a familiar sound. It wasn't the slamming of someone against a locker, or rude laughter. Those sounds varied depending on the situation. But no matter what kind of bully it was, there was always a crowd cheering. They were all bullies, even if they didn't physically hurt anyone. And so were the people who just walked by, or pretended not to notice.<p>

People like her. She took a deep breath and rounded the corner, and saw what's his name... the kid in her class who always waved his hands in front of his face and she was sure was a little crazy... Gary Bell.

"Come on retard, give it up!" growled the bully. He was also the quarterback of the football team. The rest of the team was gathered around, making rude remarks and laughing. Gary was cowering against a locker, his hand clamped tightly around a brown paper bag. His lunch she guessed.

She rolled her eyes. He probably didn't even NEED Gary's lunch; there was no good reason for him to take it. She joined the crowd and watched silently, her heart breaking for Gary. Even if he was a little strange, he didn't deserve this.

And that's how she decided to help.

Well, she didn't mentally decide; her body just sprang into action. Her books fell to the ground and she rammed into the quarterback, her fists flying. She struck him in the cheek, and he stumbled back, obviously not expecting to be hit. The other football players slowly advance, and her eyes darted from each of them. She bit her tongue. She really didn't want to move again. Was this Bell kid really worth it? Should she leave? She knew that option wasn't available anymore, so instead she used her acting skills.

"Oh wow, the quarterback needs ten other guys to take one girl." she said, silently praying this bully was as cocky as ever other one she saw.

Fortunately, he was.

He held up a hand, and the others backed off. She smiled to herself and positioned herself in a clumsy stance. She wanted it to look like she had never done this before. He leaped forward and hit her hard across the face. She reeled back; fairly certain he had broken her nose. It was bleeding.

He smiled and the other players laughed. She gritted her teeth and glanced at Gary. He was cowering like a puppy that was about to be kicked. That sight gave her the strength she needed to fight back. Blood dripped down her shirt, and onto the floor. She was sure there was some on her sneakers, but at that moment all she cared about was keeping Gary safe.

She jumped forward and kneed the bully in the stomach. He doubled over in pain. She heard teachers running down the hall.

Before they got to them, she bent over and whispered "Now, if you EVER bully anyone EVER again you'll have more the broken pride. Understand?" he nodded, still out of breath. She straightened up. It was time she left. The teachers were almost there so she turned and ran down the hall.

She ran down the hall, brushing against someone in the crowd, and raced out of the school doors and burst out, into the fresh, summer air. She was graduating this year. She didn't need to find a new school again. A world of possibilities was finally open to her. She was sure the bully would keep his promise. He would be too afraid to break it. And Gary was graduating this year, so at least he wouldn't have to deal with this place anymore. Everything would work put fine. Hopefully.

With that thought, she grabbed her bike off the rack and pedaled down the seat and wasn't seen for nearly three years.

_3 years later_

Gary hated bullies. Maybe that's why Bill bothered him so much. Bill was always a bully to Gary. Well, he said he was teasing, but it made Gary mad, and he didn't like it. That's how Gary and Bill ended up in Dr. Rosen's office.

"He ate my lunch again; I told him not to but he did!" Gary said defensively. "I didn't eat it!" Bill said.

"Bill, did you really not eat Gary's lunch?" Dr. Rosen asked.

"No!" Bill said, and stood up. He towered over Gary, who was still sitting. Gary shrank back in his chair, memories flooding him.

Right now Bill looked so much like... Him. Monroe Morris the kid who had made Gary's life miserable since first grade. Gary tried to say something, but all he could do was pull his arms up over his head in a protective way, to keep his bead safe.

"Gary! I... I wasn't... I'm sorry. I didn't eat your lunch. It's in the freezer." Bill said in alarm. He hadn't expected that response from Gary. He looked terrified.

"Thanks..." Gary muttered and stood up and hurried away into the break room. He pulled his lunch from the freezer and went to his office and closed the door. Bill didn't notice and went back to his lunch. A moment later Cameron came into the break room, and sat in front of Bill.

"Hey Bill, any idea what Gary's doing? He's been in his office for a while." Bill looked up and glanced over at Gary's closed door. "Oh I was messing with him and hid his lunch. He's probably just pouting." He went back to eating. Cameron stared at him for a second then stood up. Gary didn't pout, not for this long at least. He walked over and knocked on Gary's door.

"Come in." called Gary's voice, though it sounded shaky and uneven. Cameron opened the door and walked into Gary's office and closed the door behind him. Gary was sitting at his desk, his lunch out in front of him. "Hi Cameron." he murmured, not looking up.

Cameron stared at him for a moment, and then took a step forward. "Gary are you ok?"

Gary looked up at him. "Yes, I'm fine." he murmured. Cameron looked at him and turned to leave. "No, that's a lie. Lying is a social skill, but I shouldn't lie to my friends. And we're friends, right?"

Cameron turned and nodded quickly. "Yeah Gary, do you want to tell me what's wrong?" he asked before Gary could decide he didn't want to talk.

Gary stared at his uneaten sandwich. "I... I don't like when Bill teases me. Or takes my stuff. It reminds me of.." Gary shook his head and looked down again. Cameron, stood, rooted to the spot. He had guessed Gary had been bullied in school, but he didn't think he would seem so... afraid after all those years.

"Gary, Bill wasn't trying to be mean; he was just... teasing you. And friends tease each other." Gary looked at Cameron, and Cameron was shocked to see anger in his eyes. "No, friends don't do things that make each other sad or upset!" Gary said. "I want to be alone now." Gary added, and turned away from Cameron. Cameron sighed and left the room. He went straight to Dr. Rosen's office. Someone needed to find out who had hurt Gary so badly.

. . .

Rosen had known it was a matter of time until this happened. He had known Gary was bullied in school, but how was he supposed to know it would end like this? Gary was lying in the couch in his office, claiming that he felt sick. Cameron had told Rosen that Gary was upset about someone from his past, and Rosen didn't know anything about Gary's past. It wasn't that he didn't wonder, or ask. It was the fact that Gary never answered, and would become upset by the mention of his old high school.

So that's where the team went; minus Bill, who had insisted on staying behind in case Gary woke up. So Rosen, Cameron, Nina, and Rachel went while Bill stayed.

"How did you even find out where he went to school Dr. Rosen?" Rachel asked.

Rosen smiled to himself. "Sandra told me; she said she was worried about Gary to." he simply replied. They didn't have to go far. The school, West High, wasn't far from the office. When they reached it, they all hurried out and went inside. Rosen lead them straight to the office. Hopefully they would have so records of Gary.

"Hello? May I help you?" the receptionist asked as they walked in. Rosen knew that they must have looked strange, four people coming in in the middle of the school, and work, day.

"Umm yes. We're looking for a file on a young man who went to school here a couple years ago." Rosen said.

The lady's eyebrows kneaded together. "I can't just give you a student's file, we.." she stopped when Dr. Rosen held out his DCIS badge. As much as he hated the dumb things, they did have their uses. "You'll have to speak with the principal. He holds all the records. His office is just around the corner." she said, pointing to a door. Rosen thanked her and walked towards the room. The rest of his team followed. Rosen knocked on the door and a man, probably in his early thirties, looked up.

"Hello, may I help you?" he asked.

Rosen and his team went in, Rosen holding up his badge. "Yes, we're looking for a file on a young man who went here a few years ago." he said. The man stood up slowly.

"Ok," he said, walking over to a filing cabinet and pulling out a key. "What student?" the team exchanged looks.

This seemed too easy. "Gary Bell." Nina said quickly. The principal almost dropped his keys when she said his name.

He turned to them. "Gary Bell? I remember that kid! He was always in trouble, still is I guess." he said, turning back to the cabinet and searching through the files.

"Gary was always in trouble? That doesn't sound like him." Rachel whispered to Rosen. He nodded and turned back to the principal, who handed him the file. Rosen took it gratefully.

"So," he said as the man sat back down. "You say you remember Gary. Why was he always in trouble? I mean, that doesn't seem like him."

The man shrugged. "Well, I was only Vice Principal at the time. I remember one day that he was in a shipload of trouble."


	2. School

**Edit! Properly spaced! **

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><p>-Flashback-<p>

_Vice Principal Sterling was walking towards a classroom. The principal was making him evaluate Miss Joanne's class today. He stepped around the corner, and the first thing he saw was another fight. _

_Gary Bell was crouched against a locker, his cheek swollen. The quarterback, Monroe Morris, standing over him. The other players stood around, like a wolf pack, making their way towards their prey. __Morris said something, making them laugh like a bunch of hyenas. Sterling hurried forward, but it was nearly impossible to break through the crowd. _

_Just as he was about to shout, a girl shoved her way towards the bully, her books clattering to the floor, and hit Monroe in the jaw. Sterling smiled, in spite of himself. The bully deserved it. The young girl and Monroe fought for a moment, and just as teachers started to notice, she kneed him in the stomach and whispered something to him. Sterling was sure he was the only one to notice. _

_T__he girl, (why couldn't he remember her name?), rushed through the people, her arm brushing against him, and she left the school. _

_Afterwards Sterling knew he should have followed her, but right now Gary needed help. He was standing up, slowly, looking like a deer in headlights. He didn't seem to know what to do. Sterling hurried forward and grabbed Gary's arm. "Gary? Come on, you need to see the nurse." He grabbed Monroe's arm as he tried to slip away. "And you Mr. Morris are in a heap of trouble."_

-Flashback End-

Rosen stared as the principal finished his story. "But Mr. Morris didn't get in trouble. Gary did." Sterling finished.

"Wait, why would Gary be in trouble?" Rachel asked, the first one to recover from the shock the story had given them. Sterling shook his head and motioned to pictures that lined the walls.

"The principal at the time didn't care about being fair. If he had given Monroe a detention he wouldn't have been able to play in the football game. I protested, but the principal gave Gary a detention, for 'upsetting to peace'." he rolled his eyes. "Well, I have a meeting to go to, but I hope this file helps." He said, then jumped up suddenly and wrote something down and handed it to Dr. Rosen. "This is my cell number. I really hope Gary's ok, so if you need anything from me, any more information, call me. I would be happy to help."

And with that the man turned and left his office. Dr. Rosen stuck the paper in his pocket and looked at his team. "Well, we have two people we need to look for now." he said.

"What do you mean two?" Cameron asked. "Shouldn't we find this Monroe kid? Sounds like he was a real jerk to Gary, and was never punished." Doctor Rosen nodded, in a tired sort of way.

"Yes Cameron, I know what happened to him was wrong, but remember that girl who helped him? He didn't even remember her name. I think we need to find her too." The three younger members of the team exchanged looks. They knew Rosen was right; he usually was. But they all wanted to find the kid who had been so horrible to Gary. Somehow the young transducer had made a special place in each of their hearts, and none of them liked seeing him hurt. So they went back to the office to read Gary's file and to see if he was any better.

They all hoped he was.

. . .

When they got back, Gary was still asleep. And Bill looked worried.

"Bill, what's wrong? You look really worried." said Rachel when they walked in. "Yeah, well I wouldn't be, but he keeps shouting stuff in his sleep." he said. And almost as if on cue, Gary rolled over and started muttering.

"Monroe... no! It's mine... it's mine…" he murmured. The team exchanged looks.

"Okay, does anyone know who Monroe is?" Bill asked anxiously. He hated to admit it, but he was really worried about the younger man. He felt as if it was his fault, for hiding Gary's lunch. Rachel filled Bill in on what had happened at Gary's old school while Nina, Hicks, and Rosen read Gary's file.

After nearly an hour Nina stood up. "I can't read this anymore, it's too horrible. I mean, none of this stuff sounds like anything Gary would do. He's not that kind of person. I mean, look at this!" she said, pointing to a paper that read at the top 'Started lunchroom fight' "Or this one!" she added. "This paper reads 'Broke into school and vandalized school property'! I mean, do you think it's even possible for him to do that? Yeah, sometimes Gary's rude. We all know that, but he's not... He's not like this." she said, shaking her head.

Rosen nodded. "Yes Nina, I know. It is rather upsetting to see this. And disappointing, at how the school system failed to notice. But we're looking for information on people who might be able to help us. This isn't just Gary remembering the past. It's something that's been eating at him for a while, and it's finally surfaced enough for us to see."


	3. Secrets

**Edit! Spaced so it's actually readable. :) **

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><p>Rachel was pacing around her office when Gary woke up. She was the first to know, because she had been listening to his breathing since they got back to the office. "Gary!" she said, rushing into Dr. Rosen's office.<p>

Gary sat up, looking confused. "Rachel? Where's everyone? Why isn't Doctor Rosen in his office?" she smiled and sat next to him.

"Doctor Rosen didn't want to bother you while you slept, so he's in the conference room. How do you feel?" she asked.

He rubbed the back of his neck. "Bad. My head still hurts, and I feel… weird." He mumbled.

"Do you want me to ask Doctor Rosen if you can go home early?" she asked kindly. He shook his head.

"No, because you should only go home early if you're sick, and I'm not sick."

She nodded. "Well, if you want to just ask. He knows you don't feel good, so he'll probably let you leave early if you want." Gary nodded and stood up. At the doorway he hesitated, then turned towards her. "Um… Thank you Rachel." He said, as if he wasn't use to thanking people.

She smiled. "You're welcome Gary." She stared after him for a moment, then stood and walked to the conference room. "Doctor Rosen, Gary just woke up." She said. He looked up at her.

"Really? That's great, how does he feel?" Doctor Rosen asked eagerly, getting to his feet quickly. "He said he has a headache and feels weird." She informed him. "Do you think he's okay?" Rosen sighed and walked over to her.

"I don't know Rachel, I just don't know." Then he turned and left, probably to have a therapy session with Gary. Rachel bit her lip. Why did he have to be so vague? She shook her head. Poor Gary. She went back to her office, trying to think of something she could do for him.

. . .

"So Gary, what can you tell me about Monroe Morris?" Doctor Rosen asked.

Gary shifted uncomfortably in his seat, and avoided meeting Doctor Rosen's eyes. He didn't want to talk about the kid who had always been so horrible to him. Not with Rosen at least. "He… went to my school." Gary murmured.

"Was he mean to you?" Rosen asked. Gary looked down. He knew where this was headed. "Um… I guess so." Gary hated this. He didn't want to talk about Monroe. He had been horrible, but so was everyone else. Except that one girl from his senior year… He didn't even know her, but she had helped him. Why he didn't know, but she had done it.

-Flashback-

_Gary had been on his way to put his lunch in his locker when the football players attacked him. They wanted his lunch. He told them no, they had lunches, and his mother had packed his for him, and she wouldn't like it if he didn't eat it. They laughed at him. _

_He didn't know why; it wasn't funny. The biggest one, Monroe, had shoved him against a locker, and kicked him. It made him fall, and soon people were gathering around, watching the bully kick him._

_G__ary pulled his arms up over his head, but Monroe had still managed to get a blow in, and it hit him in the cheek. It stung badly. _

_Gary was thinking about just giving up his lunch, saving himself the trouble, when the kicking stopped. It was so sudden, that he was afraid they were trying to get him to look so they could kick him in the face, but when he finally lower his arms a girl who was in his science class was hitting Monroe. He almost cheered her on, when Monroe punched her in the nose. It started bleeding, and her shirt and shoes, and some of the floor, was covered in blood. Gary wondered why no one called the nurse. _

_Then the girl kneed Monroe in the stomach and whispered something to him. Then she looked around and ran past Vice Principal Sterling. Gary wondered if he had been there the whole time. _

_Soon a horde of teachers was there, demanding to know what had happened. Vice Principal Sterling walked over to Gary and told him to go see the nurse. Gary obeyed, and soon the swelling in his cheek went down a little. Then the principal wanted to talk to him, so he went to his office. The receptionist whispered a quick good luck, as he passed, and he entered the office. Morris was already there, looking angry. "Mr. Bell, Monroe here tells me you two were fighting."_

-Flashback end-

Gary put his hand up to his cheek, and Rosen knew what he was thinking of. "Gary?" he said softly. The young man looked up at him. "You don't have to tell me anything if you don't want to. I just want to help." Gary looked at the kind doctor who had helped him through so much. Should he trust him with his most guarded secret?

_No. _He thought, _not yet at least. But someday. _

"I… I don't think I want to tell you yet Doctor Rosen. But not because I don't trust you, it's because… I don't know if I want to tell anyone yet." He added quickly. "I just don't know if I want anyone to know."

Rosen nodded. "I understand Gary, we all like our secrets." Gary stood up.

"Thank you Doctor Rosen." Doctor Rosen smiled and nodded. Gary left his office and took the stairs up to the roof. He liked to go there. Everything was more peaceful there. When he opened the door, he saw Rachel was sitting alone, staring at the sky. He walked over to her. "Rachel?" he said.

She jumped, and then looked at him. "Oh, hi Gary. I didn't hear you." He sat next to her and they sat in silence for a while. "Gary, why did Monroe bully you so much?" she asked after a while. He looked at her. Out of all his friends at the office, he trusted her the most. She didn't treat him like a little kid, and she was always nice to him. He took a deep breath and started telling her his past.


	4. Flahsbacks

-Flashbacks-

_Gary was in first grade when he met Monroe Morris. Gary's teacher had told him to wait in the hall, but Gary had wanted to know what she was telling his future classmates. _

"_Now, today a new boy is joining our class. He's autistic, so I want all of you to be on your best behavior." She said._

_A little girl raised her hand. "Yes Sally?" "What's au... au... autism?" she asked. _

_"Autism is.. It means he has a hard time expressing himself." she said after a moment of thought. "So I want you all you to be nice to him." the class nodded, though none of them really understood it. Gary quickly stepped back into the hall and started playing with his frequencies. A moment later the teacher opened the door and told him to come in. He followed her, still playing with the frequencies. _

_"What's he doing?" someone said loudly. The teacher gave them a look that quickly silenced them, but Gary didn't really notice. He knew he was the only one who saw them, but it didn't matter. At least they were there. The teacher told him to sit next to a boy she told him was named Monroe. Gary sat down and the teacher began teaching again. Gary kept using his frequencies._

_"What are you doing weirdo?" Monroe asked. Gary glanced at him. He was a lot bugger then he was, and had neat brown hair._

_"I'm using my signals. They come from the computers and her phone." he said, as if it made perfect sense. Monroe stared at him. _

"_You're a freak." he said._

_. . ._

_Gary was in fifth grade at recess. He sat alone at the edge of the playground, alone. He was used to being alone. If he tried to play with the others they laughed at him, and sometimes they hurt him. Mostly Monroe, but so of the others helped too. Gary didn't understand it; he had never done anything to them. But he didn't try to understand. It was how it was. When his mother asked how he got scrapes and cuts he told her he fell or tripped. He hated lying to her, but didn't want to worry her. The teacher blew the whistle and he stood and walked slowly towards the doors. Then someone tripped him from behind. He fell and the students erupted in laughter. He looked up and saw Monroe walking past him, laughing._

_. . ._

_In high school nothing really changed, except that the people who picked on him were now bigger and stronger. Monroe still picked on him, people still laughed. But Gary got better at avoiding Monroe. He would take the long way to class to avoid him, though was later to class a lot, he ate alone, though sometimes he ate in the janitor's closet. Gary didn't hate Monroe. It was impossible, Gary just didn't understand him. Why had he been singled out as the one to be taunted and hurt? And the principal always punished Gary, never Monroe. Gary never understood. But that didn't stop him from wanting it to stop._

-Flashback End-

When Gary finished it was dark, but Rachel didn't care. She had tears in her eyes. He had been hurt so much, and no one seemed to care. She hugged him tightly. Usually Gary hated to be touched, but he didn't say anything.

"I'm sorry they were so mean Gary. But you have us now. None of us one the team will ever let you be hurt again." she whispered.

"Bill looked like he was going to hurt me." Gary reminded her.

"I know Gary, but he wouldn't. He cares about, just like the rest of us do." she hugged him tighter, not wanting to let him go. They sat like that for a while. Then Rachel turned to him.

"Gary, Doctor Rosen is going to find Monroe. He'll apologize". Gary gave her a strange look.

"Rachel why would I want to talk to Monroe? I don't care about him, he was a jerk to me, and it's that girl I want to see. I want to thank her for helping me."

Rachel looked at him then laid her head back on his shoulder. Doctor Rosen came up nearly an hour later, to tell Gary it was time to go home, when he saw them.

He smiled. "Gary?" he called softly. Rachel turned and jumped up, her face turning a bright red.

"Dr. Rosen! We... I..." she started frantically.

Doctor Rosen held up his hand with a kind smile. "Rachel, relax. Gary it's time to go." Gary stood up and nodded.

"Bye Rachel." he said and followed Doctor Rosen down the stairs to his car. Rachel watched them go; wishing Doctor Rosen hadn't come up.

. . .

The next morning in the car, doctor Rosen was driving to Gary's house to pick him up, when Rachel decided to tell him what Gary had said. "Doctor Rosen... Um I was talking to Gary last night." she started. "And he told me he didn't want to talk to Monroe. It's the girl; he wants to thank her for helping him."

Doctor Rosen was silent for a moment then he nodded. "I thought so. Thank you for telling me Rachel." he said. She nodded and the rest of the ride was silent.


	5. Finding Her

The team spent nearly a week searching for the mysterious girl. According to Gary's file, he had been 'assisted in assaulting a fellow student' by a girl named Anne Martin. Where ever they looked, she seemed to be just a shadow, part of the scenery. That explained why Sterling hadn't been able to remember her. But they still couldn't find her.

The person who actually did find her, was Cameron, much to everyone's (including himself) surprise. "Doc?" he said, knocking softly on the doctor's door. Doctor Rosen looked up from Gary's file. By now he could probably have recited it perfectly, just from reading it so many times, looking for clues.

"Yes Cameron, can I help you?" he asked, as he turned back to the file.

"Doc, I found her."

. . .

"Where did you find her?" asked Rosen as they hurried back to Cameron's office. "We must tell Gary straight away!"

Cameron looked uncomfortable. "Um Doc, that might not be such a great idea."

Doctor Rosen looked at him over the tops of his glasses. "Why not?" he asked.

"Doc, she's dead."

. . .

"How?" Rosen asked after a moment of silence.

"She apparently died in a ski accident; they couldn't even find her body. She's got a memorial in Adam Cemetery."

Rosen sighed and pulled off his glasses. "We have to tell Gary; he deserves to know."

Cameron nodded. "Do you want me to tell him?"

Rosen nodded. "That would probably be best."

**I know it's short, but I'm trying to picture it as a show as I write. And I'm kind of busy, so I wanted to get this one done while it was fresh on my mind! =) Hope you like it!**


	6. Letting Go

Cameron knocked softly on Gary's door and waited for the transducer to let him in.

"Come in!" he called after a long pause. Cameron opened the door slowly and stood in front of the younger man's desk, his hands stuffed in his pockets.

"Hey Gary. Um, there's something I need to tell you." Cameron said uncomfortably. How are you supposed to tell someone the person they had been searching for, for so long, was dead?

Gary looked up at him. "Hicks, what's wrong?" He asked.

Cameron sighed. "Gary, I'm really sorry. Anne, the girl you've been looking for, is… she... she's dead."

Gary stared at him for an instant, then stood up. "Show me." He said quietly. Cameron nodded, and led him out of the office and to his car. They drove in silence and reached the cemetery in about five minutes. Cameron found her soon enough, and pulled over. Both men got out. Gary walked forward, but Cameron hung back. Gary needed to do this alone.

The young transducer bent down, ignoring the dirt, and gazed at the stone. Then he gently touched the 'A' in Anne. "Thank you Anne." He whispered, and stood up. Brushing the dirt off himself, he climbed back into Cameron's car and they drove back to the office. Gary sighed. _At least I got to say good-bye…_he thought.

In the descending night, the car left behind the marble white stone and memories behind. The stone read:

_Anne Martin_

_?-2010_

'_It's not the destination, it's the journey.'_

**Well, I'm ending this story a little earlier than planned, but never fear, another story is on the way!**

**Best wishes,**

**-Spottedpool**

_All the art of living lies in a fine mingling of letting go and holding on. _

_-Henry Ellis_


End file.
